The invention relates to a cable holder for attaching cables to aircraft structures.
It is known to employ cable holders formed as appropriately shaped connection elements for attaching cable connectors, such as straps, to a vehicle structure. Such connection elements can be, for example, hooks and eye connections.
DE 30 13 750 A1 discloses a cable holder for attaching cables by means of cable connectors, the holder comprising an elongated strip with loops spaced uniformly along the length of the strip.
DE 90 05 666 U1 discloses a sheet metal part having a loop for attaching cables to the sheet metal part by a cable strap.
The known cable holders have the disadvantage of not being adaptable to available space on the structure to accommodate various arrangements of cables and cable bundles.
An object of the invention is to provide a cable holder for vehicle structures which can be mounted on the structure in a simple manner at any location on the structure and at any orientation whereby a number of cables can be readily mounted in various directions and at high density.
The above and further objects are achieved according to the invention by a cable holder which comprises an elongated plate having longitudinal edges provided with indicator markings spaced at predetermined distances along the longitudinal edges, the plate being separable at the indicator markings to provide plate segments of determined length. The plate is provided with first and second rows of retainer elements on its upper surface. The retainer elements extend transversely on the upper surface of the plate in longitudinally spaced relation along each row. The retainer elements form open loops at the upper surface of the plate for attachment of cable connectors thereto. The retainer elements in the first and second rows are displaced from one another in the longitudinal direction of the plate such that the loops in one row alternate with the loops in the other row.
A feature of the invention is that the loops transversely overlap one another so that each loop in any one row extends between two loops in the other row.
A further feature of the invention is that the retainer elements are integrally formed with the plate as a one piece body preferably molded from a plastic material.
A further feature of the invention is that the lower surface of the plate can be slightly curved so that an adhesive can be applied to the lower surface which can then be pressed against the vehicle structure at the location where the cables are to be connected.
According to a further feature of the invention, the indicator markings are formed as notches along the longitudinal edges of the plate and serve as guides for locating where the plate can be severed to form the divided segments.